1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a device and a method for electrochemically hydrogenating an aromatic hydrocarbon compound or a nitrogen-containing heterocyclic aromatic compound.
2. Description of the Related Art
It is known that a cyclic organic compound such as cyclohexane or decalin is obtained efficiently by hydrogenating a benzene ring of a corresponding aromatic hydrocarbon compound (benzene or naphthalene) using a hydrogen gas. This reaction requires reaction conditions of high temperature and high pressure, and is therefore unsuitable for small to medium scale manufacturing. On the other hand, in an electrochemical reaction using an electrolysis cell, it is not necessary to treat gaseous hydrogen since water can be used as a source of hydrogen, and the reaction is known to proceed under relatively mild reaction conditions (at room temperature to about 200° C. and under normal pressure).